2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Schonefeld
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "beautiful field" in German.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Schonefeld. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schonefeld surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Schonefeld in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schonefeld, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schonefeld
The surname SCHONEFELD is of German origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old German words "schön" meaning "beautiful" and "feld" meaning "field" or "open land". The name likely originated as a descriptive surname, referring to someone who lived near a beautiful field or area of open land.
The earliest known record of the SCHONEFELD surname appears in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from the region of Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. This suggests that the name was already established in parts of Germany by that time.
In the 14th century, a family of nobles bearing the name SCHONEFELD is mentioned in the records of the Margraviate of Brandenburg, an historical territory located in modern-day eastern Germany. These records suggest that the SCHONEFELD family held lands and titles within the region during that period.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the SCHONEFELD surname was Johann SCHONEFELD, a German scholar and theologian who lived from 1450 to 1521. He was a prominent figure in the early years of the Protestant Reformation and authored several works on theology and religious doctrine.
Another notable figure was Hans SCHONEFELD, a German painter and engraver who lived from 1590 to 1635. He was known for his intricate etchings and woodcuts, many of which depicted religious and allegorical scenes.
In the 17th century, the SCHONEFELD name appears in records from the town of Schönefeld, located near the city of Berlin. It is likely that some branches of the family took their name from this location, which itself derives from the German words "schön" and "feld".
During the 19th century, a prominent SCHONEFELD was Carl Friedrich Wilhelm SCHONEFELD, a German astronomer and mathematician who lived from 1809 to 1883. He made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the orbits of comets and asteroids.
Johannes SCHONEFELD, a German composer and organist, was also a notable figure in the late 19th century. Born in 1856 and active until his death in 1923, he composed numerous works for organ and choir and served as organist at several churches in Berlin.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schonefeld
Among Census respondents with the surname Schonefeld, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Schonefeld bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Schonefeld surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 93
- Two or more races4.0% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schonefeld
Schonefeld appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-4 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,887 places
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-6 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 2,642 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.6%) | Down 13,887 places |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | -6 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 2,642 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Schonefeld surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #152,628 | #155,270 | -1.7% |
| Count | 107 | 101 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -15.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schonefeld bearers went from 107 to 101 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 2,642 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #155,270.
FAQ
Schonefeld surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schonefeld?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Schonefeld. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Schonefeld?
Schonefeld ranks #155,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 101 people with the surname Schonefeld. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Schonefeld.
Has Schonefeld become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schonefeld went from 107 recorded bearers to 101. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #152,628 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Schonefeld?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schonefeld, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Schonefeld in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (93 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schonefeld appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Schonefeld (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Schonefeld mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "beautiful field" in German. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Schonefeld (0.03 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Schonefeld?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Schonefeld on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.